Gaulthier said she accepted the city's decision to halt three charters from opening this fall because officials opposed placing elementary schools in the same building as high schools. The third would have taken space from a special education program. Despite that decision, she said, she believed the mayor is pro-charter.

"I'm going to hope that he actually will come out and say that he's pro any school that's serving kids with a high-quality education," she said.

At issue, the possibility that Mayor Bill de Blasio will charge rent to better funded charter schools, and that he would slow down the pace of opening new charter schools inside regular public schools. Last week, the mayor blocked three charters and three district schools from opening this fall, a decision that sent shock waves through at least part of the charter sector.

The three charter schools blocked from opening were part of the Success Academy network founded by Eva Moskowitz. She told NY1 that preventing one of her Harlem schools from expanding into a middle school would affect 194 fifth-graders who she said, "are being thrown out on the street, educationally homeless."

Schools Chancellor Carmen Fariña countered on Wednesday that these children can apply to other Success Academy middle schools or regular district schools.

Moskowitz was one among thousands of supporters at Tuesday's charter school rally in Albany where Cuomo praised her schools. Gauthier's coalition declined to go, calling it divisive because it conflicted with the mayor's rally for expanding pre-kindergarten and after-school programs. For more on the rally organizers -- and the support behind charter schools -- take look here.

Morty Ballen, the C.E.O. and founder of Explore Schools in Brooklyn, argued the rally was needed to convince state lawmakers that charters should be allowed to grow. Ballen wasn't happy with de Blasio's move to block three charter schools. But he said that doesn't mean the mayor is anti-charter overall.

"It signaled that there's an understanding that charter schools are snowflakes, and that there are different situations and contexts for the different charter schools," Ballen explained.

Gauthier said her charter school coalition is hoping to meet with some of the larger charter operators in coming weeks.

"My gut tells me we want to see the same thing in the end," she said.

Meanwhile, some critics were against the mayor for not going far enough in rolling back charter schools' expansion.

City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Public Advocate Leticia James said they may revive a lawsuit seeking to stop all of the co-locations approved in Mayor Michael Bloomberg's final year on the grounds that they would cause overcrowding and didn't involve enough community consultation.

Tags:

Beth Fertig is the contributing editor for education, covering the New York City public school system for WNYC on air and online at SchoolBook.org. She has covered education in the city for more than 15 years. Beth is the author of Why cant u teach me 2 read? Three Students and a Mayor Put Our Schools to the Test (FSG Books) which grew out of a radio series on the low graduation rate for special education students. Follow her @bethfertig.

Comments [2]

Donald Diamond

The Mayor clearly ran for office on a well disclosed intentions about charter schools, He has taken what appear to be delivering on campaign promises by targeting three charter schools who get a free ride paying no rent to operate while deriving substantial profits. The ability to advertise constantly on television in the New York markets coupled with the ability to bus thousands to demonstrate in Albany seems to be a profit making business to maintain profitability. The anti-mayor attacked should be viewed in the context of balancing the need to for the public to subsidize these profitable business ventured with free rent.

Eva Moskowitz was not "among" those at the rally; she created the rally. She closed her schools and carted parents and kids up there. Without that, there would have been no rally. And oh PUH-LEEZE: "a decision that sent shock waves through at least part of the charter sector." She's been frothing for this fight for quite some time and came out swinging. What shocked her was that, in fact, De Blasio UPHELD SEVEN of her colocations, even though they will leave way more than 193 children "educationally homeless." She's like the Upper East Side on a snowy day, so long pampered by plows they don't even know what a little snow looks like.

Ms. Moskowitz is leading most of the media around by the nose right now. She's feeding you her spin, and you relay it as default. That she lost three colocations is peanuts compared to what schools across the city lost with this last round of colocations, both charter and public. But there goes the press, trailing after Eva, scribbling down HER message, because she's provoking a fight with De Blasio and she's paying Cuomo to shill for her ($400,000 from her backers, $65,000 from her PAC by last count. http://ny.chalkbeat.org/2014/01/17/success-academy-donors-flood-cuomos-coffers-filings-show/ I'm sure he earned a pretty sum more on Tuesday). "Meanwhile, some critics were against the mayor for not going far enough in rolling back charter schools' expansion," doesn't begin to cover the real story, the one that affects thousands of children and scores of communities across the city.

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